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Boris Johnsonwas left furious after the Vote Leave campaign suggested that David Cameron will be forced from office in the event of a Brexit, it is understood.

Allies of Mr Johnson said that he was “blindsided” and left angered by an “amateurish” attack by the Leave campaign on the Prime Minister after it emerged that he will appear in an EU “debate” on ITV alongside Nigel Farage, the Ukip leader.

John Whittingdale, the Culture Secretary, on Thursday said that Ofcom, the media watchdog, could receive complaints because Mr Farage is not a member of the Vote Leave campaign and had been chosen as an opponent by Downing Street.

The split at the top of the Leave campaign came after the Telegraph disclosed that Mr Cameron will not take part in any head-to-head debates with Tory Brexit backers but will instead appear on the same programme as Mr Farage.

Vote Leave issued a statement claiming that ITV had “lied” during negotiations, warning “consequences” and adding that “the people in Number 10 won’t be there long”, in a clear hint that Mr Cameron would be forced from office in the event of a vote to leave the EU.

Mr Johnson and Michael Gove, the Justice Secretary, have always said that they want Mr Cameron to stay as Prime Minister even if Britain votes to leave the EU.

Asked about the row on Thursday, Mr Johnson said it was “complete nonsense” to suggest that the referendum would lead to a change in Government.

He added: “I would much rather talk about the issues that matter to the people of the country and the great choice that we face in a few weeks' time.

“The more we bang on about who is going to be talking to whom in the debate, the more people's eyes will frankly glaze over.”

However, Mr Whittingdale, also a member of the Vote Leave campaign, said that it was “extraordinary” that ITV had bowed to the Prime Minister's demands to debate Mr Farage instead of a Conservative minister backing the Brexit campaign.

He told Sky News: “The idea that the Prime Minister has attempted to tell ITV who they should invite or who they should not invite seems to me extraordinary.”

Lord Grade, the former ITV chairman, accused those behind the comments of threatening ITV with “political repercussions” and called the remarks “unacceptable” and “shocking”.